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Washington Redskins’ Offensive Line Already Hurting

LANDOVER, MD - OCTOBER 16: Kory Lichtensteiger #78 of the Washington Redskins is attended to by a trainer during a game against the Philadelphia Eagles at FedExField on October 16, 2011 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)

(Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)

ASHBURN, Va. (CBSDC) — The Washington Redskins have been practicing without starting right tackle Jammal Brown throughout training camp. Now the team will be without starting left guard Kory Lichtensteiger as well.

Brown, placed on the physically unable to perform list, is out with an inflamed right hip. He’ll be joined on the sideline by Lichtensteiger, a fellow third-year Redskin who was expected to return to health in 2012.

Lichtensteiger had a minor knee procedure on Monday to clean out some floating particles that had caused soreness in his surgically repaired right knee. Having missed the final 11 games of the 2011 season after tearing his ACL and MCL in October, an MRI revealed that Lichtensteiger’s ACL and MCL are fine. But the knee scope could sideline him throughout the preseason.

“Surgery went well, he’s finished with it,” head coach Mike Shanahan said. “I think under normal circumstances he might be able to come back for the third preseason game. My thoughts right now, hopefully he’ll be ready for the first [regular season] game. We’ll get him back in football shape and hopefully there will be no setback.”

If Brown or Lichtensteiger miss game action they will likely be replaced by journeyman tackle Tyler Polumbus and second-year guard Maurice Hurt respectively.

Polumbus, 27, played in five games and made four starts for the Redskins last season. A pupil of Shanahan’s in Denver who has also played in Seattle, Polumbus has played in 56 career games and made 19 starts during his four-year NFL career.

Hurt started eight of Washington’s last nine games a season ago. The former University of Florida standout — drafted in the seventh round 15 months ago — struggled during his time a starter last season.

Shanahan has said that he isn’t worried about Brown’s status, offering only that he’s hoping the inflammation was a minor setback that could have happened at any time. But considering that the former all-pro missed more time last season than he did in his inaugural campaign with the Redskins, any concern over Brown’s health should be deemed responsible and fair until the results come back from his MRI.

“Well sometimes [the injuries] happen at one position, that’s why you need depth,” Shanahan said about his offensive line. “We do have some depth, which is nice. If you do lose one or two guys, you’re expecting some guys to come in and fill the void.”

Because of a thin market of available proven offensive line options, the Redskins may have to rely solely on internal options to replace the production of Brown and Lichtensteiger.

Shanahan was asked if Washington is considering bringing in a veteran from outside of the organization to bolster the club’s depth up front.

“Those guys aren’t out there. If they were out there and we thought somebody was better than the people we had, we’d try t get those players.”

In the mean time the Redskins will push forward with the personnel they have, attempting to keep rookie quarterback Robert Griffin III upright and healthy behind a patch-worked starting front that suddenly looks very similar to the makeshift unit the team finished the 2011 season with.

Grant Paulsen is the Redskins beat reporter for 106.7 The Fan and co-host of Washington Football Tonight heard weeknights at 6:00 p.m.
He provided the play-by-play during the Ripken Baseball World Series in 2005 and was a reporter for ABC Sports'...